The NBA’s Board of Governors is expected to approve the play-in tournament as a permanent fixture for future NBA seasons, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported on Monday.
The first two seasons of the play-in were voted on a year-to-year basis. The approval is expected to come down on Tuesday, per ESPN.
In the play-in tournament, each conference’s No. 7 and No. 8 seeds play against each other for the No. 7 seed while the No. 9 and No. 10 seeds play a single elimination game. The winner of that game goes on to play the loser of the No. 7 vs. No. 8 game, with the winner taking the No. 8 seed.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver Getty ImagesSo far in two years of the play-in, the No. 7 seed is undefeated at 4-0 while the No. 10 seed is still winless at 0-4. The No. 9 seed is a solid 3-1 while the No. 8 seed sits at 1-3.
The play-in originated in the COVID-19 bubble, where the No. 8 and No. 9 seed fought for the final playoff spot, but only if the two teams were only separated by four games.



